Vaisampayana

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Vaisampayana
Vaishampayana listens as Shaunaka recites the Mahabharata.
AffiliationRishi
TextsMahabharata, Harivamsa

Vaishampayana (

IAST: Vaiśaṃpāyana) is the traditional narrator of the Mahabharata, one of the two major Sanskrit epics of India.[1]

Legend

Vaishampayana is a renowned sage who is stated to be the original teacher of the Krishna Yajur-Veda:[2]

The great man of intellect Vaiśampāyana, the disciple of Vyāsa, divided the tree of Yajurveda into seven branches.

— Agni Purana, Chapter 150

The Ashvalayana Grihya Sutra mentions him as Mahabharatacharya. He is also mentioned in the Taittiriya Aranayaka and the Ashtadhyayi of Pāṇini.[3]

Vyasa is regarded to have taught the Mahabharata of 100,000 verses to Vaishampayana. He is regarded to have recited the epic to King Janamejaya at his sarpa satra (snake sacrifice).[4] The Harivamsha Purana is also recited by him, where he narrates the legend of Prithu's emergence from Vena.[5][6]

References

  1. ^ www.wisdomlib.org (28 January 2019). "Story of Vaiśampāyana". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  2. ^ www.wisdomlib.org (13 November 2021). "Names of different Manus, different Sages and others [Chapter 150]". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  3. ^ Raychaudhuri, H.C. (1972). Political History of Ancient India: From the Accession of Parikshit to the Extinction of the Gupta Dynasty, Calcutta: University of Calcutta, p.38
  4. ^ "The Mahabharata, Book 1:Adi Parva: Section I". sacred texts.
  5. .
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Further reading

  • Dowson's Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology